Iran's President Mohammad Khatami on Tuesday vowed that the February 20 parliamentary elections will go ahead according to schedule in a "healthy, free and competitive" environment. "The government's plan is to hold healthy, free and competitive elections and we will definitely hold such an election," he said, according to IRNA.

His comments put an end to the speculation that the government may choose to ditch the elections following the wholesale disqualification of prospective candidates and the supervisory Guardians Council's refusal to reinstate them.